The opening ceremony ahead of the Rising Pune Supergiants’ IPL 2017 opener against Mumbai Indians at the MCA Stadium here on Thursday was witnessed by a sparse crowd as the stands were yet to fill up when the celebration kicked off. (SCORECARD | IPL 2017 COVERAGE)

In fact one hardly took notice that the opening ceremony had already begun as the excitement was hardly palpable.

The opening ceremony began in traditional Maharashtra style with men dressed in Peshwa avatar dancing to the Puneri dhol beats.

Singer Shalmali Kholgade performed a few Bollywood numbers before the two captains – Steven Smith and Rohit Sharma – came on stage to pose with the IPL trophy with the Pune skipper presenting Rohit with a memento.